Restricted Choice
by Chris Hasney on
November 22nd, 2009
One of the sexy bridge terms to throw around is “Restricted Choice.” I’m sure I saw what will follow in a recent Bridge Bulletin, but I couldn’t find it. But hooray, I just found it in Mike Lawrence’s “How to Play Card Combinations” (1988, Devyn Press). He says of restricted choice: “The ‘principle’ says that if someone plays one of two equal honors, there is a chance he doesn’t have the other. This is because if he had the other honor, he’d might have played it. Don’t worry. I’ve never heard anyone explain this principle in understandable fashion. I don’t understand it either. At least, not so I can explain it.”
I concur, lol.
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Restricted Choice is false. It fails to ask the “right” question. If your lho plays the Q when QJxx is missing the right question is :
“What is the probability lho has QJ doubleton?” The followers of Rc ask instead:
“What is the prob that lho has QJ doubleton AND decide to play the Q first, rather than J first?” This prob is HALF the right prob — and results in the RC followers claiming the prob is higher that Q is singleton.